Sea Exploring
(1966-98) 
With the establishment of the Exploring Division in 1969, William Lidderdale was named the first Director of Sea Exploring since 1935. Also in 1969, Sea Explorers would allow girls, usually Mariner Girl Scouts, to participate as guests with Sea Explorer Ships. In 1971, with the rest of the new Exploring program, Sea Explorers would go fully co-ed.
New Logo
In addition to the traditional Sea Scout logo of the First Class badge
on
the anchor, a second Sea Explorer logo was created in 1971: the
Explorer Big
E on an anchor, which is shown above. This logo was mainly used
by
Sea Exploring units following non-traditional programs.
New Program
The program of Sea Exploring was basically the same, but added features
of
the new Exploring program. Or more precisely, expanded the scope
of
the "Sea Exploring" program. This was done by having units fall
with
three divisions or fleets: Blue, White, and Red.
The Blue Division/Fleet would be composed of those Sea Explorer units that follow the traditional Sea Scout program in place since the 1920s. These units would most likely still call themselves "Sea Scout Ships" or "Sea Explorer Ships", use the traditional advancement program and naval style uniforms.
The White Division/Fleet would be composed of those Sea Explorer units that don't quite follow the tradition program. They would probably have a sailing or powerboat emphases and be chartered to local sailing or yacht clubs, but may not bother with the traditional advancement program or the full naval style uniforms. The alternate advancement program of Small-Boat Handler and Qualified Seaman would be more appealing to these units. They would probably not call themselves "Sea Scout Ships", and may not even use the term "Sea Explorer Ships".
The Red Division/Fleet would be composed of all other types of Explorer units with some aquatice/natical/ocean-based program. These units would probably a program emphasis in the area of scuba diving, oceanography, water skiing, and the like. They would probably not bother with any formal type of uniform, and even the Qualified Seaman and Small-Boat Handler advancement program would not be of interest. They would probably not even call their unit a "Sea Explorer Ship" but a "Sea Explorer Post" or just an "Explorer Post".
National Sea Scout Events
The National Sailing Championships began in 1966. They
were
held each year until atleast the early 1990s. Anyone know how
long
they lasted? I had assumed the last was around 1986, as National
has
stopped all the various National Explorer events to have only one, but
later
found out they ran atleast until the early 90s.
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972 Ft. Worth, TX
1973 San Diego, CA
1974 Rye, NY
1975 Chicago, IL
1976 New Orleans, LA
1977 Long Beach, CA
1978 Chesapeake Bay
1979 Cleveland, OH
1980 ??
1981 ??
1982 Florida Sea Base
1983 Ohio State University
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991 Patuxent Naval Air Station, Maryland
1992 Patuxent Naval Air Station, Maryland
others??
| 1985- Exist? | |
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Am I missing any other patches for the Sea Explorer Exhibits at the National Jamborees??
Uniform
For those units who still followed the
traditional "Sea
Scout" program, they could choose to continue to wear the traditional
white,
navy blue, and tan uniforms. For those units who did not follow
the
traditional program, they could choose the uniform that best suited
them.
This followed the idea of the "Distinct Dress Identity" used throughout
Exploring.
Advancement Program
In addition to the traditional advancement program of
Apprentice-Ordinary-Able-Quartermaster, an "alternate" advancement
program was created. This program was intended
for Sea Explorers and units that were not interested in the traditional
program.
It consisted of the Small-Boat Handler and Qualified Seaman
badges. Small-Boat Handler was earned by completing 3 (later 2)
2-hour
training sessions: Aids to Navigation & Rules of the Road, and
Boating
Safety. Qualified Seaman was earned by completing the following 8
2-hour
sessions:
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Unit Organization
Units following the traditional Sea Scout program would continue to use
the
traditional organization. Some new positions were created, those
of
Purser, Storekeeper, Specialist, and the short lived Cabinet Officer
and
Representative, for those involved with the District Explorer
Cabinets. Those units in the White and Red Fleets would follow
more standard Explorer unit organization. The following table
shows the comparison.
| Sea Scout or Sea Explorer | Explorer |
| Sea Scout Ship or Sea Explorer Ship | Explorer Post |
| Skipper | Advisor |
| Mate | Assistant Advisor |
| Boatswain | President |
| Boatswain's Mate | Vice President |
| Yeoman | Secretary |
| Purser | Treasurer |
| Storekeeper | Quartermaster |
| Crew Leader | NO EQUIVALENT |
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Council/Regional/National
Organization
The structure of committees developed at the Council, Regional, and
National
Levels continued. See the Sea Scout page for 1924 for pictures of
their
office insignia. For some reason, the Area [Task Force] insignia
was
dropped.
Miscellaneous
National would continue the use of "Standard Explorer Unit" awards for
Sea
Explorer Ships. No longer could Explorer Posts earn it. In
1990,
the idea of National, Regional, and Local levels were dropped.
Now
there would be only the Standard Explorer Unit.
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Sea Explorers would continue to have the "Long Cruise". This
was for a shipboard trip of at least a week in duration. Special
patches were issues, along with arcs for additional Long Cruises.
Red arcs for
additional Long Cruises, white for 5 additional Long Cruises.
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Arcs NO PICTURES |
Literature
The new Sea Exploring program was embodied in the new 8th edition of
the
Sea Exploring Manual, which was supposed to come out in
1965. A ninth edition came out in the late 80s.
In the early 70s, a new Skipper's Handbook was produced. It didn't last long.
For the new alternate advancement program of Small Boat Handler and
Qualified
Seaman, Instructor Guides and Workbooks were produced
in the
60s. Not sure how long they were kept in print.
| Sea Exploring Manual (8th Edition) (#3239)
1 1966,Apr 30000 2 1966,Aug 3 1970,Sep 9000 4 1972,Jan 7000 5 6 1976,Jun 4000 7 1977,Sep 8 1985 paperback, 442pg |
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| Sea Exploring Manual (9th Edition) (#3239)
1 1987 2 1997 [new cover] paperback, ~270pg |
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| Safe-Boating Instructor's Guide (#6662)
1966 Safe-Boating Workbook (#6663??) |
 NO PICTURE |
| Advanced Seamanship Instructor's Guide
(#6660) 1966 6M466 36pg Advanced Seamanship Workbook (#6661)
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| Handbook for Skippers (#3233) 3rd Edition 1st 1971,Aug 10000 paperback, written by Arthur Lindgren |
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18226 |
1215 |
74 |
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18064 |
1241 |
79 |
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Statistics taken from BSA Annual Reports to Congress
Updated: 07/08/2004mrb